Don't you just love a royal scandal?

I don't know if you've noticed but lately there's been a lag in royal news. Queen Beatrix's abdication just serves as a reminder of how dull British royal news has become. It is truly a sad situation when other royal houses do more interesting things than the British do.

Case in point. The Dutch abdication is historic. Right now all we have to work with is Kate going to Starbucks and shopping at the Gap and Harry expressing ambivalence towards his destiny. Ho hum stuff. The British royal family is ripe for a royal scandal in 2013. I just know it. I'm not referring to a scandal where someone dies. Nothing that dire. No, what we need is a scandal we can sink our teeth into, one that lights up Twitter and royal message boards and inspires columnists to write sanctimonious articles that add nothing to the solution.

2012 was not a boring year. What with the photos of Harry in Las Vegas and Kate's topless photos in France. If I had known that was the best the royals could do, well I would have savored the fallout more. So far 2013 has turned out to be rather dull in this respect. True, it is January. But as February approaches, the signs are not good.

It's not as if we don't have something to look forward to. Yes, yes, I know William and Catherine's baby will arrive in July. Yes, the Queen is celebrating the anniversary of her coronation. I'm sure Charles and Camilla will take the tube again. Maybe this will be the year Princess Anne smiles.  *Yawn* Excuse me while I await the stamps, coins and multiple commemorative issues from Hello magazine.

Harry used to be the go-to royal for entertainment value. What with his rugged good looks and complete inability to distinguish from inside your head thoughts vs outside your head thoughts.Much like when Fergie reappears. It seems they can no longer shock us. It's more a case of shaking heads and sighing "OK, what did she/he do this time?" The only way Harry could shock us now is if he said something diplomatic.

I'm not picky. I'll settle for an illegitimate child, maybe someone can unexpectedly come out of the closet. If they run out of ideas they can look to the Monegasques and run off with someone from the circus or marry someone against their will!

Fingers crossed!

© Marilyn Braun 2013

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Why Prince Andrew should forgive Fergie

Prince Andrew must, no doubt, be aware of the story of his ex-wife having been caught in a sting by a journalist from the News of the World. We can only imagine the 'apoleptic rage' he keeps hidden behind the royal reserve while attending engagements. To his credit he ignored questions by reporters, thereby not engaging in a public mud slinging match. One well chosen syllable of which would have been enough to destroy her reputation for good.

Fergie, who was in the US to accept an award will be returning to the UK soon. The Daily Mail predicts there will be a showdown, where she will be called to account to her ex-husband for her latest gaffe.  Fergie, in her 'fragile mental state,', according to the Express, is 'throwing herself at the mercy of friends.' "Desperate and in a bad place' she has taken to leaving 'anguished messages' on a friend's answering machine.  Oh the melodrama!

Prince Andrew of all people must be aware of the predicament Fergie is in. After all, didn't his family help place her there by shafting her in the divorce settlement? Leaving her with little more than £15,000 and the remnants of a royal title. Who can blame her for trading off on what she has? Isn't he doing the same? Were it not for his title, would he be in the same position he is now?

The Prince is also well aware of how the media has treated members of his family. This is not the first run in with News of the World, and it probably won't be the last. Hopefully the Duchess will be wiser the next time but given her track record I doubt it. Placing the blame solely on Fergie and permanently faulting her for being naive would make them both look bad.

Let's also not forget that she is the mother of his children. The princesses must be caught in the middle, their loyalties divided. Beatrice and Eugenie must know their mother and the position she's in better than most, yet at the same time realizing that a price shouldn't be put on their royal heritage. I've always gotten the impression that Andrew and Sarah, sharing living arrangements and holidays, as the 'happiest divorced couple in the world' who, in Andrew's words, are 'divorced to each other, but not from each other' must share a special bond that the rest of us find hard to comprehend. A bond which survives even through her previous gaffes, some which have been more humiliating to him than being offered up for £500,000.

My money is on them weathering this storm too. After all of these years and after all they have been through, they must be fairly familiar with the following quote: 'to err is human, to forgive is divine.'

© Marilyn Braun 2010